America Is in the Heart

Hi, everyone!

We are in the midst of midterm season here at Hunter, and everyone is beginning to worry about their grades. I'm keeping myself sane by blocking out time to work as well as to kick back and relax. Last weekend, I was studying for my physics exam, and I was definitely stressing out about all of the problems that I had to do. I ended up having a mini dance party/exercise session in my room just to chill out and let out some energy. I played the music loud, and I just moved any which way. Even though I was a sweaty mess at the end of it all, I felt really great. Like I had been unburdened of something. I used to actually do this in high school, and I think I'm going to go back to doing it on a regular basis.

For me, another awesome form of release is shopping. Don't worry everyone. I'm not a shopping addict or anything. But I do love to just go out by myself or with my mom and check out what's new in all of my favorite stores. It gets my mind off of things that stress me out and allows me to focus on just finding awesome pieces for my wardrobe. I actually ended up going shopping after my physics exam on Wednesday. I walked to 59th street and hung out at H&M for awhile. I bought some cute things that I'll be happy to show off as spring comes around.

In my last post, I forgot to include a couple of pictures that I took at the 66th St-Lincoln Center train station when I attended The Macaulay Messenger section editor meeting two weeks ago. I was fascinated by both of these pieces. I hope that the MTA integrates more of this kind of mosaic art in their stations. This kind of stuff should be done at all different kinds of stations and not just the ones that are most frequented by tourists.

Last Sunday, I watched the Academy Awards along with millions of other people. I read that the ratings were quite high, which I'm not surprised about because everyone loves Ellen. She is truly an awesome lady, and she made the show a lot of fun to watch.

Fav moments:

- That incredible selfie that shut down Twitter for awhile

- Jared Leto's touching speech

- Matthew McConaughey's speech

- Lupita Amondi Nyong'o's speech

- Pharrell Williams's performance of "Happy"

- When Ellen ordered pizza

I just finished reading this book called America Is in the Heart for my Filipino-American Lit class. It's truly a great book. It tells the story of a boy who grows up poor in the Philippines and ends up coming to the US to give himself the opportunity at a better life. However, when he gets here, all he finds is violence, discrimination, and general depravity. But he never lets go of his faith in America.

S.

College Tip of the Week: Attend events both on and off-campus. 

College is the time for exploration in all of its forms. One way to explore your interests and expand your mind is by attending events held at your college campus and/or events held in the city your college is located in. We, at Macaulay Hunter, are lucky to go to a college located in one of the best cities in the world. There is always something to do here. But every college, even ones that are located in small towns, has something to offer in terms of activities. 

Here are some things that you should take advantage of: plays, concerts, guest lecturers, movie screenings, galleries, workshops, etc.

Attend as many events as possible without jeopardizing your study/class time. You will not regret it. There is so much out there to know, and colleges do a great job of organizing events that are both informative and are fun for students.* Also, check to see if there is anything interesting going on off-campus. I love art in all of its forms so I tend to gravitate to museum exhibits, author talks, etc. Attend whatever you think is interesting, but also go to things that you wouldn't normally go to. You might learn something cool.

Don't be afraid to ask upperclassmen if they know about any cool events. Also, don't be afraid to go to events alone. If you want to go see that Frida Kahlo exhibition, then go see it! So what if your friends aren't interested? 

*Many on-campus events have free food!